Summary:
Set in the There Be Dragons, Harry Universe, this snippet is the second halloween prompt, as promised all those months ago. It skips a few years into the future with a young Teddy and a new OC. It is NOT TBDH canon.
Pairings:
Harry Potter x Harry's Bonded future and present.
Ilsa x Deveraines
Disclaimer:
I do not own any Harry Potter anything. That belongs to J.K. Rowling. I just like playing with Harry in my own little world of storyville. I make no money by writing this fanfiction. All original characters are my own.
Rating:
T – Suitable for children or teens below the age of 16.
WARNINGS: Fluff. Family. OC's. OOCness. TBDH Universe. AU. Other warnings will be added as I see fit.
A/N: This is a prompt fill for the request to show some more of Harry and little Teddy, that everyone enjoyed so much from the mother's day snippet. I haven't had time to write a Christmas or new year's one for this year, but I thought I'd go ahead and post this one anyway. Thanks for reading! ~Scion
"Stop squirming, Teddy," Harry bopped his adopted son lightly on the head, as he tried to finish spelling on the pointed fae ears that would complete the Halloween costume. Why Teddy had wanted to be a Fae this year was beyond him, but he would do anything for his little boy—including spelling ears on him.
"It tickles!" Teddy protested, tilting his head to the side yet again, as he felt the magic trickle over him from his Mera's wand. It was warm and safe, as it always was, but it tickled and his ears had always been sensitive. Still, he wanted the ears and would only trust his Mera to see to it.
"It will only take a minute and then it won't tickle anymore," Harry repeated, patiently. They'd already finished one side, amidst many giggles and squirms. "You know I have to help Shasta with hers."
"Can't Da do it?" Teddy rubbed his charmed ear on his shoulder—as best as he could anyway. He liked Harry's charm best, because it reminded him of good things. The only other option was the Merrow—because Teddy loved the feel of that magic even more than Harry sometimes—but the Merrow had locked himself in his office, muttering about stupid holidays and events. He'd put his foot down quite firmly on the option of joining in on the festivities and nothing anyone had said, had been able to change his mind.
"Quinn's with Fred," Harry reminded him, drawing the little boy to hug him from behind. He thunked his chin atop Teddy's head, stifling a grin when the squirming stopped almost at once and Teddy's trademark blue hair fluxed to his own dark-raven strands.
"Da's still not feeling well?"
Harry winced. "Well," he began, slowly. "Sort of. I'm sure Quinn can sort him out."
"But what if Da can't?"
"Then he'll have to sit things out," Harry sighed. He tapped the wand to Teddy's uncharmed ear and waited while the transformation happened as he willed his magic to do what he wanted. "All done."
Teddy twisted to grin up at him, making no move to break from the embrace.
Harry found himself grinning down at the little imp. He tucked his wand back into his holster and scooped Teddy up, balancing him on one hip, a motion that had become even easier to do throughout the years. "Let's go see who's ready, hm?"
"I am, Harry." George came through the doorway leading to the kitchen, wearing his brightly feathered and colored costume. He winked at Harry's incredulous look and held his arms out for a chance to give Teddy a ride as well. As the holidays drew nearer, most of them were instinctively inclined to carry the little lad anywhere they went.
Teddy, as a orphan who had lived on the streets for blessedly short time, had weather enough harshness to make him soak up their fussing like a sponge. He did not particularly care to be carried everywhere, but he adored the hugs, cuddles and kisses that came with it.
"Where's everyone else?" Harry asked, handing over Teddy to George's ready arms.
George sighed. "I don't think there's that many of us," he admitted. He winced when Teddy accidentally kicked him in the side with one pointed shoe. "Quinn's still with Forge, our Ace is brooding over that requested patrol and-"
"And Charlie's almost done and Theo is stressing again," said the Green-eyed Pareya trailing after George as he exited the kitchen, a platter of iced cupcakes in hand. "These are snacks, according to Quinn."
"Snacks?" Harry eyed the sugary confections. He decided not to think about how much healthy goodness could be inside such delightfully tasty treats. Appearances could be deceiving and sometimes it was best to simply pretend he didn't know what Quinn put into his culinary creations. This was one of those times, since logically, he knew there ought to sugar in such things as cupcakes, but with Quinn's recent stint of no-sugar in the kitchen—well, Harry wasn't sure.
"Can I have one?" Teddy stretched a hand to the tray. He was looking at George, but both Pareya were looking to Harry. They tried to keep track of what Teddy could get into, but Harry had a knack for knowing what, where and when—without batting an eye.
Harry bit back a smirk and nodded. "Everyone can have one," he allowed. "Then put them in the traveling case and let's hurry it along. I don't want to be late."
"Are we meeting Bahn and the others?" Charlie asked. He came down the stairs, joining them all in the hallway. He paused to kiss each of the Pareyas on the cheek, to tweak one of Teddy's charmed ears and he snagged a cupcake, before stealing a kiss from Harry.
Shaking his head, fondly, Harry leaned forward to take a bite out of Charlie's cupcake. It was surprisingly good and perfectly sweet, as expected from Quinn. "Bahn and Bhindi," he reminded the redhead. It had taken some time for him to come to terms with both of the elfin draggles and their respective Circles, but now, they could all handle a gathering between them without constantly stepping on each other's feet, magic and egos. "How's Theo?"
"With Shasta." Charlie said, calmly. He tore the cupcake in half and fed the larger section to Harry. His eyes darkened slightly when Harry innocently licked his fingers in appreciation. He'd make sure to cash in on that promise tonight.
"I'm worried," Harry deadpanned. He had reason to be, knowing Shasta. "Get everyone together at the door, eh?"
"Is Wikhn coming?" Charlie asked, herding the others towards the sitting room in the direction of the front door.
"If a certain someone lets him off," Harry said, shaking his head.
Wikhn and Fred had gotten into another one of their pranks-turned-into-spats. The result had left Quinn trying to remove a curse from a not-quite-contrite, but admiring Fred while a broody and thoroughly scolded Wikhn had been turned over to their Ace to be handled.
Harry had left it up to them as to whether they would join the Halloween-trick-or-treat festival planned in the main square. He wasn't holding his breath. His lectures weren't quite getting through and he wasn't in the mood to deal with their squabbles. He wanted to focus on the holiday and his children.
Nevarah was wonderful for the way it handled cultural events and holidays, always taking the opportunity to celebrate something new. Harry had been thrilled to recognize his own favored holidays along with new ones he'd never even heard of. Now that they could, he took every chance he could to take his Circle out to enjoy the sights, sounds and smells, which always had the side-effect of bonding them all closer together as a family.
He was a little disappointed that they weren't all going to make it as a full Circle this year, but he'd grown used to that as his Circle had expanded and he'd come to understand the various obligations of each of his Bonded. He was proud of them for being such strong, supportive members of the community and respected individuals in their fields and so he could understand when they had other things to attend to.
"If a certain someone lets who off?" Theo wanted to know. He descended the stairs, carrying their only adopted daughter, six-year-old Shasta, perched on his hip, her aristocratic pout making her appear every inch the pureblooded daughter that she was.
"Da!" Shasta solemnly proclaimed, her honey-brown eyes zeroing in on Harry. "I'm a princess!" She was swathed in glittery, wispy material as a princess gown, with a glittering tiara on her forehead. An intricately painted butterfly adorned one half of her cherubic face and her butterfly earrings completed the look.
Harry couldn't hide his smile. He could see the gleam of pride in Theo's eyes and knew that while Shasta's unhappy circumstances had brought her to their doorstep, she was now one of them in every single way and they would all fight tooth and nail for her to stay their daughter.
Theo was the perfect picture of a proud daddy and even when he reached them at the foot of the stairs, he made no move to set her down. He'd adapted easily to the changes in their Circle, a detail that had eased them all when the new changes had come. Children were an entirely different adventure, compared to fighting old Voldy snorts and dealing with dark demons.
Shasta wrinkled her button nose, her dark eyes flickering a few shades lighter, before morphing into a bright green. "You like it?" she asked, the change in eye-color being the only hint that she was worried about Harry's response.
"It's beautiful," Harry complimented. "Theo, you didn't tell me you were escorting such a lovely young princess to our party. I thought you were helping Shasta."
Shasta giggled in delight. "It's me, Mera!" She chirped, all seriousness gone as she wriggled in Theo's grasp, reaching out to Harry. "Where's 'eddy?"
"Teddy," Harry corrected, gently. He knew she'd pick it up in time and he wasn't about to pick her up just to set her down. He blew a kiss at her stretching hands. "He's with Charlie, they're out front. Go catch up with them."
Theo set her down and watched her scurry off. He held out a hand to Harry and smiled when Harry pulled him closer and tucked the proffered arm around his waist. He kissed the side of his head and fell into slow step beside him. "You alright?"
"You not stressing?" Harry countered.
"With you, my treasure, by my side. I have no reason to stress. None at all." Theo murmured. He stopped just out of sight, to receive a proper kiss for his thoughtful words.
Harry hummed into the warm kiss, using a wisp of his empathy to check that Theo was indeed fine and not too stressed to handle a public gathering. His Theo had been working so hard these past few weeks, a family outing was just what he needed—what they all needed, if he was honest.
"Good," he said, patting Theo's chest and smoothing down the elegant dress robes. He had no idea what Theo was dressed up as, but costumes were not always required. He'd opted to just go with as much glitter and shiny things as he could manage. People were welcome to take a guess if they liked and use their imagination. He didn't care. His children were happy enough and that was all that mattered.
"Did Quinn…?"
"Everyone keeps asking," Harry said, sneaking another kiss. "I'm not sure."
Theo nodded, his eyes flaring a bright vivid gold as he reached through their mental links and lightly pulled on the one associated with Quinn. "He'll bring Fred."
Harry smiled. "I guess that means Wikhn will come too," he mused.
"Oh?"
"He's charming when he wants to be," Harry said, lightly. "You know he'll talk his way out of duty and into joining us tonight."
"Your faith in my authority and my ability to wield it, is quite reassuring," their Ace spoke from the side hallway, a smirking Wikhn trailing behind him. "Should I be offended?" His expression was one of indulgence, the shadows and steel hidden for the time being.
Harry shrugged, hiding a smile of his own. He'd sensed their approach, as Theo, no doubt had done. "If you must ask, then the answer is no." Harry said, pulling away from Theo to inspect his two Bonded. They were dressed in long, draping costumes, with painted faces depicting silly skull faces. "What are you supposed to be?"
"Something that is not sexy or scary," the Ace said, dryly. "Don't ask me whose idea that was."
"Stop complaining," Wikhn grumbled, tugging at his costume front. "You're the one that thought it would be funny."
"I didn't mean for both of us, I just-"
Theo sniggered, valiantly turning it into a cough at the last second. "Shall we?" He asked, fighting to keep a straight face.
Harry elbowed him. "After you."
They made their way out of the house to where the rest of their Bonded had gathered on the front yard, some of them casting glamours due to the lack of actual costumes. Harry smiled as he watched them bicker and banter between each other, the twins in top form, a slightly exasperated Quinn standing off to the side, shirtless.
Harry perked up, puzzled. He trotted over to inquire about it, pausing to briefly nuzzle Quinn's smooth, prettily-scaled shoulder. He would always love the fact that Quinn had four-colors to his natural scales. "What are you supposed to be?"
Quinn rolled his teal eyes, glancing down at his wispy harem pants and the bejeweled headpiece. He had glamoured his neck to hide the scars for tonight, and wore fat gold jewelry on his wrists and neck. "A sexy healer." He deadpanned.
Harry blushed a bright red, before he gave him a light shove. "Quinn!" he scolded, even though the jibe had been through their mental links alone.
"A genie! A genie—it was Shasta's idea. She wanted her own personal—genie." Quinn dodged the elbow that came his way. "Harry!"
The blush stayed and Harry scowled, but he didn't protest when Quinn slipped a hand into his. The rest of their Bonded came filing out, some of them trying to make last minute tweaks with their costumes, while the others hurried them out.
An excited Teddy and Shasta began to run around them, shouting and giggling excitedly about the adventures awaiting them.
"Shhh!" the Pareyas hushed them, Shasta being ushered off to Theo and Teddy to Harry, as they prepared for the portal to take place.
In a matter of minutes, magic was summoned and cast. Harry and his Bonded 'ported out to the city's main center.
Harry's smile stayed.
~FIN~
This is NOT TBDH-canon. I just wanted to write a little bit more with Harry and Co + little Teddy and then I had the thought of a "what if" he had an adopted daughter, so Shasta made an appearance. The result was adorable fluff, I think. I hope. lol. Like most of my prompts, this was written in a 30-minute block. I apologize for any obvious typos or plot holes. I wrote this a few months back and just cleaned it up to post today, as I'm trying to get some of my writing squared up for the new year. Thanks for reading!